


almost

by civillove



Series: plans wrapped in rubber bands [24]
Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: F/M, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-09
Updated: 2019-07-09
Packaged: 2020-06-25 08:35:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19742041
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/civillove/pseuds/civillove
Summary: Summary: Beth realizes what a good separation looks like by observing Rio and Lana, she puts her foot down with Dean in terms of their custody battle and Carlita has something important to tell Rio.--“If you can organize your closet by color, you got time to water some plants.” She pours a little water from the glass into the pot the orchid is in, humming a little as she touches the petals.A soft huff leaves Rio’s lips and takes the glass in her hands to sip water out of it, “You like that I’m organized,” He licks his lips when she looks at him, “I know you watch me put clothes away.”





	almost

**Author's Note:**

> AN: There were no major prompts that went into this one but I really have to thank Lauren from the bottom of my heart for always being willing to throw back ideas back and forth with me. The Rio/Lana/Beth scene might not have happened without her. xoxo
> 
> One more part to go folks! Thanks for reading.

Rio wasn’t always a light sleeper; he remembers a few months before Marcus was born that Lana used to tell him he could sleep through a new world war. He always thought she was exaggerating, especially since that woman wasn’t very loud to start with. Soft-spoken, gentle gestures, tender touch—the only thing that wasn’t quiet was her laugh. He still thinks about times he’d playfully put his hand over her mouth and her giggles would slip between his fingers.

That’s when they were good.

Then he started buildin’ his business and he learned exactly what people were capable of, what _he_ was capable of. That to say the least put him on edge; he doesn’t sleep as long or without his gun nearby, sometimes directly under his pillow. It doesn’t take a lot to wake him—whether it’s Marcus moving around the apartment, someone opening their door right outside his own or people talkin’ downstairs. He gets enough hours, sure, but it’s definitely not as peaceful as he remembers.

He wishes he could turn it off but it’s not that simple.

Which is how a noise downstairs in the Boland household pulls him from sleep. He lies there for a moment, listening, Elizabeth asleep on his chest. Her arm is curled around his waist, face pressed into his shoulder, hair tickling the soft skin of his neck. He doesn’t want to leave her but—

There it is again, just the faintest noise of somethin’ movin’ against the floorboards—maybe towards the kitchen? He needs to check it out, there’s too many factors goin’ on lately that warrants someone bein’ here when they shouldn’t be.

Rio gently slides out from under Elizabeth, running his fingers through her hair as she sighs in her sleep and curls into her pillow. He makes quick work of pulling a t-shirt over his head and grabs his gun, not taking the safety off. He leaves the bedroom, glancing down the hall where Elizabeth put Jane to bed, the only kid in the house because Dean’s a dick.

Really, no surprise there, but ever since he caught them in the kitchen he’s been doin’ that passive aggressive shit again where he only lets her see one kid at a time. Elizabeth’s really gotta get a handle on that; he gets that they’ve been busy but there’s only so much he’s willin’ to put up with until he does somethin’ himself.

Rio turns along the hallway and starts heading down the steps, careful and slow movements, gun not raised—just listening. There’s a chair skidding? Maybe someone came through the back door. At this point he wouldn’t be surprised to see Dean again with a lame excuse about how he can’t mind his own business. Maybe that’s unlikely, seein’ as how it’s probably a little past two AM, judging on when they went to sleep. Which just leaves him with uneasy feeling about Veto or fuckin’ Carlita when he turns the corner and sees—

Nothing.

He frowns a moment, confusion pinching between his eyebrows as he walks closer to the kitchen. There’s a nightlight on above the sink but other that that, the room’s submerged in darkness. The moon outside and the dull blue glow of the refrigerator’s ice maker isn’t doing any favors.

He flips the kitchen light on and as soon as he does that he sees a head of brown hair in a pink nightgown and _oh—_

Rio quickly puts his gun on top of the fridge as Jane turns to look at him from around the island counter. He offers her a gentle smile, careful not to crowd her, “You hidin’?”

She shakes her head, soft pink blush kissing her cheeks as she holds onto a stuffed rabbit against her chest. She presses her face into the ears so she doesn’t have to answer him. He smirks softly and glances at the chair she’s obviously pulled out because it’s in the middle of the kitchen, almost against the fridge.

“You plannin’ a big escape?”

Jane smiles this time and shakes her head, “No.” Her voice is soft and he can tell that she’s a little wary of him. Despite bein’ around her before and comin’ to her birthday party, she’s still reserved—which makes her a very smart kid.

He crouches in front of her and licks his lips, glancing at the bunny in her arms. “That’s a nice rabbit you got there; she got a name?”

Jane’s long hair nearly covers her face like a curtain but she pulls the bunny back well enough to speak, “Daisy.”

He smiles, “Daisy,” He repeats and reaches his hand out. “Can I see her?”

Jane considers him for a long moment and he sits very still while she thinks about it before she eventually puts the soft stuffed animal into his hand. He hums a little and makes purposeful bouncing noises as he trails Daisy along the kitchen floor before hopping up Jane’s body and kisses her nose.

Jane giggles and pushes the rabbit away, a soft laugh leaving his lips before letting her have it.

“What’re you doin’ down here?” He asks, pushing her long hair over her shoulder.

Jane takes a step forward and touches his bird tattoo, fingers curling along the long wingspan on the right side of his throat. He lets her, balancing himself carefully so he doesn’t tumble backwards when she pushes insistently into him.

“Bad dream.” She says after a moment, moving to run a hand over her face as she yawns. He hums under his breath a moment—knows all about nightmares, sometimes visited by a few that never really went away.

He thinks about Elizabeth, how she was plagued with those mud dreams, drownin’ in it and he hopes that’s the worst of it. Ever since she told him about them, they seem to be fadin’ to the back. She hasn’t had one in a while, but he knows while she continues to do this business that they’re always capable of gettin’ worse.

Always.

“Wanted ice cream.”

Rio raises an eyebrow and squeezes Jane’s fingers that are still on his neck so he can pull away from her and stand up. “Ice cream?”

She nods her head up at him, a smile now tugging at the ends of her mouth. “Makes you feel better.”

He laughs softly and shakes his head, running a hand over the lower half of his face because, yeah—alright, she’s not exactly wrong. He guesses that’s what the chair was for, tryin’ to get it herself except now she’s lookin’ at him…very expectedly. Once again, smart kid.

“I think your mom will kill me if we have ice cream this late.”

Jane puts her hands on her hips, like she’s somehow thought of that excuse already. “She doesn’t have to know.”

Rio smirks and leans down to lift her up so she’s seated on the counter across from the fridge. He taps the end of her nose with his finger, movin’ the chair back to where it belongs so it’s out of his way. “That’s a very dangerous attitude you got there, Ms. Boland.” He smiles at her over his shoulder and gets bowls down from a cabinet. “I like how you think.”

He reaches into the freezer to grab the chocolate ice cream, spooning out a healthy amount for them both before handing her a bowl. He clinks spoons with her in a weird sort of version of ‘cheers’ and digs into the ice cream. She’s smiling the whole time she eats, ending up with a ring of chocolate around her mouth because she keeps talkin’ about her bee costume and how it’s very serious business to be a bee on stage while hittin’ the spoon against her lips.

He gathers up the bowls a few moments later and rinses them out in the sink, cleaning her mouth with a wet paper towel before letting out a soft sigh.

“Alright, think you can sleep?”

Jane yawns in response and puts her arms up, signaling to Rio that she wants him to pick her up. He does, letting her legs wrap around his waist, her head falling against his shoulder as he turns the kitchen’s lights out and takes her upstairs.

“Do you like my mom? Do you think she’s pretty?” Jane asks against his collarbone and he sighs because, God, kids are somethin’ else. He maneuvers his way down the hallway and presses her bedroom door all the way open with his hip.

He smiles a little to see that the crown fairy lights that he got her for her birthday are around the headboard of her bed and doesn’t reply to her until she’s settled against her pillows.

“I think she’s very pretty.”

Rio pulls the blankets up over her chest, helping her adjust her bunny before tucking that pink-stitch blanket he had to rescue from that fuckin’ crack house near her shoulder. He thumbs at one of the twinkle lights,

“You want these on?”

She nods, pressing her face against her pillow, “She was sad, before…” Jane trails off either unsure of what to say next or because she doesn’t completely understand.

He swallows and nods his head, brushing his fingers through her hair a moment because like he’s said before: kids are observant. Marcus doesn’t know exactly what he does; just that he’ll always take care of him and that he usually has money to do so, that it’s dangerous and time-consumin’ because he tells him not to worry if he disappears for a few days at a time. Marcus has seen his gun before and he knows not to go near it.

And Jane, despite not knowin’ specifically what happened with her parents, knows that her dad doesn’t live here anymore, that she sees her parents on and off but usually not together and that whatever’s happened has made her mom sad.

If only it were possible to hurt Dean without encountering some sort of backlash—then again, Rio’s sure seein’ Elizabeth be successful and independent without him is more than enough punishment.

“I’m workin’ on more smiles, yeah?” He promises and she offers a soft one before nodding her head. “Now, no more chocolate adventures. Go to sleep.”

Jane giggles before closing her eyes, pressing her face into her bunny before taking a deep breath into her lungs. Rio sits with her a few moments before he gets up and leaves her bedroom, closing the door behind him.

He wanders back into Elizabeth’s room, a soft smile on his lips as he notices she hasn’t moved since he left her and takes his t-shirt off before crawling back into bed. She wakes up, briefly, a soft moan leaving her lips as she settles back against his chest.

“Everything okay?” She mumbles, voice caked with sleep.

Rio hums, wrapping his arm around her before brushing his lips against her temple. “S’fine. Go back to sleep.”

He doesn’t have to tell her twice, her breathing already deep and even as she presses her face into his chest and he allows himself to relax so that he can sleep too.

\--

They have about two weeks before they finalize everything with Veto and honestly? Beth can’t wait. She feels like this has been in the works for too long but with all the setbacks and renegotiations it makes sense that they’re only getting to this spot in their deal now. She adjusts a bag in her arms as she climbs the stairs to Rio’s apartment, letting out a breath that fans her hair out from sticking to her forehead. She’s trying to balance an orchid in one arm and a bag of groceries in another—not ideal but she’s almost there.

It’s nice to take a break from all the Veto and Carlita business because her and Rio are able use their time getting back to the basics. They have to drop another car off tonight at an address right outside of Detroit but that’s not until much later and they have plans just to…hang out, spend time with one another.

Beth pauses outside of Rio’s front door, trying to fish her keys out from her purse.

She’s picked up ingredients to make salad and a batch of chocolate chip cookies, the anticipation of domesticity so strong that it feels like it might reach through the door and grab her. But it’s nice to remind herself that her and Rio are capable of doing something as simple as this, that they’re _good_ at just relaxing and building a relationship that has nothing to do with crime.

It reminds her of what she’s wanted for a long time now; a partner in every sense of the word.

Beth manages to get the door unlocked and presses it open with her hip, wandering into his kitchen to put the bag down along with the orchid. She smiles at the plant, pleased with herself that she’s gotten it from her van to his place without damaging it. It’s predominately white with a flush of pink on the petals, beautiful, but definitely not easy to take care of. Orchids are kind of like the divas of home plant life—sometimes they’ll decide to just up and die if you don’t water them the same way each day.

She looks up at Rio exiting his bedroom, dressed in black jeans and a navy-blue t-shirt, his forehead crinkling with confusion as he sees the plant.

“What’s this?”

“It’s an orchid.” She says happily and moves to take her coat off and hang it by the front door, her boots and purse following before wandering back into the kitchen.

He leans against the counter, touching one of the petals. Beth quickly smacks his hand away with a soft head shake and fills up a glass with water. “Yeah, thank you Ms. Botanist, I know what an orchid is,” He rubs the back of his neck a moment. “I’m tryin’ to figure out why there’s one in my kitchen.”

“Because I went to water your succulents this morning and learned that you only have two that aren’t plastic.”

“On this plant thing again, hmm?” But he’s smiling, clearly amused. “Why can’t I have plastic plants? I’m busy.”

“If you can organize your closet by color, you got time to water some plants.” She pours a little water from the glass into the pot the orchid is in, humming a little as she touches the petals.

A soft huff leaves Rio’s lips and takes the glass in her hands to sip water out of it, “You like that I’m organized,” He licks his lips when she looks at him, “I know you watch me put clothes away.”

Beth feels the softest of blushes kiss her cheeks and she _refuses_ to look at him, instead she tends to the plant in front of her. “No idea what you’re talking about,” She mumbles. “You got a spray bottle?”

Rio smirks and moves out and around the counter, reaching underneath the sink for what she’s asking for. He pauses in handing it to her, wanting her attention for something he’s about to say, “You know I cleaned out space in there for you.”

She chews on her lower lip, a soft smile tugging the ends of her mouth. Not that she’s trying to diminish the moment, she can’t help it— “Did you get rid of black shirts or?”

“Cheeky,” He hands her the spray bottle. “It’s just a few drawers, hanger space for your blouses.”

And she’s touched, really she is, a warm spot blooming outward in her chest directly under her heart. He’s made space for her here, something becoming _theirs_ and she leans over to press a kiss to his cheek.

Then “Feel free to let me know if you need space for your panties,” He licks his lips. “I’m sure I can figure somethin’ out…or you could just stop wearin’ them.” His hand falls to her one hip and she hates that her face resembles the tomato that she bought for the salad and purposely pushes him away.

She concentrates on fixing the spray setting before dousing the petals, “So this needs to be kept in a slightly warmer environment and you have to water the bottom as well as spray the petals.”

He sighs and she can see him shaking his head out of the corner of her eye, “I’m gonna kill this thing, I’m tellin’ you right now.”

She pouts for a moment, angling her body towards him. “Aw come on, you’re not even going to try? You could use a little color in here that’s not _green.”_

Rio narrows his eyes at her but he’s smiling, running his thumb along her lower lip just because he can. “Says the woman who just painted her desk ‘Avocado’.”

“I’m going to put it near your windowsill in your bedroom,” She picks it up and starts to walk it over, her socks gently padding against the wooden floor. Beth glances towards the closet and considers changing into a pair of leggings but decides against it, her jeans and t-shirt are rather comfortable.

She smiles as she puts it down on his nightstand, setting the spray bottle right next to it so he doesn’t forget about that part.

“There, see? Lovely.”

He rolls his eyes and starts taking the groceries out of the shopping bag, laying them all out on the counter. It’s mostly containers of mixed greens but she also got a tomato, peppers, mushrooms, an onion, cheese to grate, a bag of croutons and a vinaigrette. All the cookie ingredients are set to the side for later and he eyes the bag of croutons with interest before opening it up with his teeth, sticking a hand inside to pop a few into his mouth.

“If you love it so much why don’t you take it home with you.”

Beth puts her hands on her hips as she stands across from him, eyeing him over the counter. “I know you gave my daughter ice cream the other night, so you’re going to let me keep the orchid here.”

His eyes widen just a little and honestly the look on his face is worth the words out of her mouth anyways but he clears his throat before shrugging his one shoulder, trying to act like she didn’t catch him red-handed.

“Fair enough,” He sets the bag of croutons down. “But I’ll have you know I was pressured by a similar pout you just gave me and a stuffed rabbit. Clearly I had no other choice.”

Beth shakes her head but she’s smiling, taking a strainer out from under his counter to put into the sink to wash the greens. “A gang leader who has a neck tat and carries around a gold-plated gun is swayed by a six-year-old with a bunny…that’s good to know.”

He grins at her, eyes trailing down her body like his hands are slipping underneath her clothes and touching her bare skin. “I also really love chocolate ice cream.”

She grabs the containers of greens off the counter and presses a haphazard kiss to the corner of his mouth, just because, and walks over to the sink. She pulls her hair back, washes her hands and then dumps the greens into the strainer, rinsing them with cold water.

“You want to do something useful and start grating cheese?” She asks him without looking, Rio coming up behind her a moment later to wrap his arms around her waist.

She sighs softly at the contact, the heat of his body seeping through the clothes she has on to kiss the pores of her skin. Beth leans her head back until it falls against his shoulder, exposing her neck, and Rio can’t help but lean down and press a kiss there.

“So this isn’t useful?” He asks, breath caressing her throat.

Beth shivers, turning the water off in the sink and shaking the strainer so excess seeps through the holes. She sets it down, drying her hands off before placing them over top of Rio’s arms across her waist, her thumb tracing the rope bracelet on his wrist.

She looks up at him, her nose brushing the underside of his jawline. “Not if you want to eat any time soon.”

There’s a knock at his door and he sighs, squeezing her around her waist before letting go. “How bout I get that; how’s that for useful?”

She laughs softly and nods, moving to get a plate out and a cheese grater as she listens to Rio unlock his front door. She pauses as she hears a woman’s voice and looks up to see Lana walking in with Marcus.

“I’m sorry this is so last minute,” She says, running a hand down her yellow dress, a black leather jacket around her shoulders to bring out the darker accents in her brown hair. Yellow is definitely her color and Beth tries to think for a moment if she even has anything that bright in her own closet. “My doctor’s appointment got rescheduled.”

“Nah, it’s fine.” Rio says gently, Marcus brightening like the sun when he sees Beth in the kitchen.

He runs over to her and hugs her around her waist, a soft laugh leaving her lips as her hand comes down to run her fingers through his hair. “I think you get stronger every time I see you.” She teases, “One of these days you’re going to knock me over.”

He grins up at her, “Sorry, Ms. Beth.” And pulls back to take his backpack off, wandering to his bedroom to take his shoes off and put his things down.

Lana smiles at Beth and gives her a soft wave before turning her attention back to Rio, “I’ll pick him up right after.”

“Lana,” Rio’s smile is warm, a little teasing at the edges as his hands come down on her shoulders to squeeze her arms. “S’fine, really. I don’t have anythin’ goin on until later tonight. Take your time.”

Beth tries her best not to stare at them, what they’re discussing is none of her business but…she also can’t quite help it. She never thought she’d get to see them in the same room together, interacting, and while she doesn’t know all of the ins and outs of their relationship, she knows enough to understand that they’re on good terms. Rio’s not only a good father but a good ex-husband—and she hates that that concept is wildly strange to her.

Her eyes trace over Rio’s form as he speaks to her, Marcus running into the kitchen and trying to stand up on his toes to look over the counter to see what she’s doing.

“Can I help?” He asks.

Beth tears her eyes away as Lana walks further into the living room, a little more out of earshot, and looks down at Marcus. She smiles just a little because it’s so easy to see Rio in him when his eyes are wide and curious like that.

“Of course,” She picks him up so he’s sitting on the counter and hands him the cheese grater. “So your father was supposed to be doing this but I think it’s better if we get a professional in here.” She winks, making him smile. “You have to be very careful because these are sharp, okay?”

She demonstrates how to grate a piece of the cheese, nice and slow strokes as she holds it against the plate, shaving big flakes for their salad. Marcus studies how she does it, chews on his lower lip as he watches, making sure not to miss a single thing.

“Now you try. When the piece gets too small, I’ll give you another one. Be careful with your fingers.”

He nods his head, dedicated to the duty at hand and Beth rinses the tomato before getting out a small cutting board. Her eyes flicker back up to Rio and Lana, talking in the living her, her gaze tracing over how he’s holding himself. He’s different, something she noted instantly when Lana walked through the front door—his body is loose, muscles relaxed…his defenses are down.

Rio is completely comfortable around Lana, almost to the point where Beth feels like a different person is in his living room. He smiles a little easier, his voice is soft and warm, fond, and she wonders if this is the version of him that Lana knows to be true.

She watches Rio disappear into his bedroom for a few moments only to come back with a small envelope—she can’t hear what they’re saying but she can only assume that it’s money. Lana shakes her head, her hand falling onto the wrist that’s holding the envelope and nearly pushes it away. Her face is pinched with something that looks like frustration and if Beth had to guess? she doesn’t like where Rio’s gotten this money from.

From the past conversation she had with Lana, she knows what Rio does because it was something that tore them further apart. That she’s spent too much time in the past worrying about him and his involvement with his business.

The fact that Rio takes the time to make sure he has money to give to Lana, to still provide for her and his son? that really hits at something square in Beth’s chest.

She swallows thickly and checks on Marcus to make sure he’s okay, his big toothy grin given back to her before she begins slicing the tomato in her hand. She finds herself almost envious of the interaction in front of her—because her and Dean are so far from civil it’s almost sickening.

_This_ is what a successful separation looks like.

But maybe they’re missing a key factor that Rio and Lana have—they still care about one another.

Rio says something to her, quick but patient, his eyes boring into her as he tries once again to hand her this envelope. She sighs but eventually takes it, rolling her eyes and saying something that makes Rio smile. He pulls her into a hug, which she melts into, her face pressing into his shoulder.

And Rio? He closes his eyes as he hugs her, hand wound in her hair, something intimate that Beth shouldn’t be observing.

So she tears her eyes away and focuses on cutting the tomato.

They both wander back into the kitchen after a few moments and she looks up with a soft smile as she gets ready to rinse the mushrooms.

“Can’t stay?”

Lana hums, moving to press a kiss into Marcus’s hair before handing him another small block of cheese to grate. “Afraid not. But I’m looking forward to him having this skill at home.”

Rio smirks and leans onto the counter, eating a tomato slice with a bit of salt that Beth’s cut. He looks over his shoulder towards his bedroom and, “Hey you wanna take an orchid with you?”

Beth throws a mushroom at his chest and Lana lets out a soft laugh at Rio’s mask of fake innocence. “I was just kiddin’.” He takes the mushrooms from her so that he can rinse them (and so that she no longer as anything as a projectile to launch at him).

“I’ll let you two get back to your lunch.” She touches Rio’s back before she leaves the kitchen. “Thanks again.”

Lana makes her way out of the apartment, waving when Marcus says goodbye around a mouthful of croutons. Beth smiles as she hears the front door close, cutting up pieces of pepper next for their salad as Rio gets bowls down from the cabinets.

“You like salad?”

Marcus swallows the croutons and nods his head. “Yeah, I’m an omnivore.”

Rio smirks and gets out forks next, pausing to ruffle his hair. “That’s dino-speak for yes.”

She chuckles when he waves the bag of croutons at her, “Extra of these!”

“Wouldn’t that make you a _carb_ ivore?” The joke lands flat even though she thinks it’s hilarious. Marcus blinks at her and hides behind the bag while Rio shakes his head and scrunches his nose. “Aw, come on. That was funny.”

“Maybe do somethin’ useful and start divvyin’ up the salads?” He teases, echoing her words from later.

Beth huffs but does just that, adding only a little bit of greens to Marcus’s bowl and watches him take too much cheese and too many croutons—boy after her own heart, really. Rio places a kiss on her shoulder, giving her a soft wink as she turns to look at him, getting both of their bowls ready to eat.

\--

They gather in the living room, Beth and Rio on the couch while Marcus sits on the floor with his iPad. He’s got these comically big earphones on, bopping his head along to some sort of song? as he eats his overdressed salad. Honestly at this point she’s just impressed that he _will_ eat something green—her kids take one look at lettuce and throw tantrums about French fries.

She brings her knees up to her chest as she finishes her own salad, using one last tomato around the bowl to soak up the vinaigrette before sliding it into her mouth. Rio collects the bowls and takes them into the kitchen, putting them into the sink, her ears perking as he pops a bottle of red wine and hands her a glass before sitting down again.

It’s definitely a nice gesture, not often does she enjoy wine when she’s got bourbon or kids running around the house. She stretches her back a little before settling into the corner of the couch, Rio shifting closer so that when she brings her legs down they’re pillowed on his thighs. His arm stretches behind her, brushing his thumb along the side of her neck, making her look at him.

“You’re quiet.” He notices, taking a sip of his wine.

Beth sets her wine down on her knee, tracing the rim of the glass with her thumb before shrugging her one shoulder. “I was just thinking about…you and Lana.” Rio hums softly but doesn’t say anything, his hand coming down to rest on her leg as he settles back against the couch. “It’s really nice the way you two communicate.”

He licks his lips as his thumb works into the muscle along her upper back, fingers splayed along her collarbone. “We weren’t always like that,” He admits after a moment, “Took a while to get our shit together.”

She lets out a long sigh, running a hand through her hair because despite her and Dean only starting this path of divorce and custody agreements? It already feels like a nightmare. How long is she supposed to wait for them to come to some sort of understanding? Will Dean ever reach that point if she doesn’t choose between her family and her partnership with Rio? Because she knows that the ultimatum is coming—he’s tried to make her decide before.

“You thinkin’ about him?” Rio asks after a moment and she appreciates that this is one of the only times he doesn’t refer to Dean as ‘dick’ or ‘dumbass’.

Beth lets her eyes wander over to Marcus who has also finished his salad and has moved onto playing some sort of game on the iPad—something definitely with dinosaurs and a soft smile tugs at the corners of her mouth. She hates being frustrated about this but she also knows that she can’t just ignore this Dean thing forever.

They got divorced and figured out a custody agreement for a reason; she has to put her foot down.

“It’s just…it’s not even about loving him anymore, we can’t even respect one another.”

Rio bites on his tongue, she can see the muscles in his jaw work because he wants to say something but doesn’t. She can only guess _he never respected you_ wants to come out of his mouth and she almost appreciates that it doesn’t.

Instead, “You gotta take care of you.”

She nods softly, moving to settle further against his side, closing her eyes as her nose brushes along the wingspan of his bird tattoo. He’s right, of course she knows he’s right—which means there’s only one thing left to do.

\--

The custody agreement was pretty easy to figure out especially when Dean moved into his apartment downtown—the documents said splitting on a week by week basis, all coming together for birthdays, holidays or special occasions. They’d been pretty lax because they were getting along, switching them on and off on some nights depending on work schedules, or when Dean had interviews for new jobs, when Beth wanted a girl’s night, etc. They were even working in weekly family dinners until Dean caught Beth and Rio in the kitchen that day.

Beth tried not to let it get to her, she let Dean have the kids when he wanted them because she didn’t want to make waves—that plus all the stress of her dealership being redone and random meetings with Veto and Carlita, it was almost easier that way. It’s not that she doesn’t love her children and she _never_ wants Dean to feel like he can use them as some sort of bargaining chip, or that she doesn’t care…but this recent shit of him, once again, only letting her see one kid a time has to stop.

So after she runs the kids to various engagements, she parks outside of Dean’s apartment and lets out a soft sigh, checking her reflection in her rearview mirror before getting out. She’s not leaving until this conversation is settled, stalking right up to main buzzer and laying in on the button until he lets her up.

He has the door ajar when she walks up the one flight of stairs; he looks flustered, pants unzipped, shirt unbuttoned—clearly in the middle of something. “Beth—”

She scoffs and shakes her head, “Yeah, I got a few minutes so you can finish up.” Because she’s sure it’s not going to take that long. “I’m not leaving until we talk.”

He seems frustrated but more than that, _embarrassed_ that she’s caught him in the middle of fooling around with someone else. But honestly? she could care less; she just has to take care of this before dropping off a car tonight with Rio.

She leans her shoulder against the far wall, Dean disappearing back inside for a moment and when he opens the door again a tall, thin blonde is leaving very quickly, barely clothed. She passes Beth and runs down the stairs, Dean trying to gather up his dignity as he clears his throat and tucks his shirt back in.

“Uh, come in.”

Beth wraps her arms around herself and takes a step inside his apartment, instantly scrunching her nose at the sight of how untidy it is. She knows that her household is also the byproduct of having four kids but for some reason this realization that the mess in her life is inherently _Dean_ is coming way too late.

“I’m sorry you had to uh…I didn’t mean for her to be here when you…”

Her eyes glaze over dirty dishes, unwashed laundry on the floor and take out containers littering his coffee table. “I really hope you don’t have the kids over when it’s like this.”

He blinks, “No, course not.” Dean licks his lips and unbuttons his shirt when he realizes he misses a button and fixes it. “I’m sorry about Mandy.”

That’s her name? A soft laugh leaves her lips because why is he still talking about this? Does he _honestly_ think she cares about his indiscretions anymore? “Dean, I don’t care who you put your penis in. That’s the magic of divorce and having decent sex myself.” _It’s also what happens when you’re with someone who respects you_ but she’s not about to say that on top of everything else.

And just like that, like a shadow passing over his face at the mere mention of Rio, he straightens his shoulders out. “I don’t want to talk to you if you’re here to talk about _him.”_

She scoffs out a sound because _really?_ She takes a step towards him and is pretty sure her foot lands in a cereal bowl but won’t allow herself to get distracted as she says, “You can’t keep doing this passive aggressive shit with our kids, you’re violating our custody agreement.”

Dean leans against the back of his couch, crossing his arms over his chest in a way that’s supposed to make him look indifferent, “Well you’re violating…our kitchen, so.”

Beth finds it ironic that he doesn’t want to talk about her and Rio and yet here he is, _talking about Rio._ Is it really just about him being jealous? About not wanting her to move on with her life? What does Dean want from her? To feel ashamed about being independent and finding someone who’s willing to build her up instead of tear her down?

She feels white-hot anger start to boil under the surface—just _looking_ at him makes her want to scream. “We were on the same page, every other week with the exception of birthdays, holidays—”

“You don’t have to quote the agreement to me, I know what it says.” He narrows his eyes at her, “That was before you literally started sleeping with a criminal.”

She scoffs out a laugh, “You got a lot of nerve judging me, and criminal or not, you’re not even half the man or father that he is.” Beth runs a hand over her face; this is not what she’s here for.

That comment hits Dean hard, she can see it on his face, and she _almost_ feels sorry for him until she realizes that they’re in this mess in the first place because he couldn’t keep it in his pants. She doesn’t have to validate her feelings; she can hate him if she wants to and she can demand that he treat their custody agreements with respect because at this point? She doesn’t want anything else from him.

“But if you want to do this Dean, I mean if you _really_ want to get into this? Then fine,” She straightens out her shoulders, “Rio’s got a great lawyer on retainer, she’s already said she’d be happy to help. And we both know I have no trouble getting ahold of the money it would take to pay her.”

And while that’s not exactly true? She loves watching Dean squirm. Rio did mention a lawyer he works closely with, but it was more to open up the line of communication to see if she could find a decent custody lawyer. Beth told him not to worry about it, that’s she’d handle Dean, but seeing the look of pure terror on his face is completely worth it.

He goes white as a sheet, staring at her as she lays down an ultimatum right at his feet.

“You got a few thousands of dollars sitting around for _your_ lawyer? Then let’s do this.”

Beth stands there for a long moment, meeting his gaze, trying to predict what he’s going to do next and _hopes_ this is enough to get him to stop. She doesn’t want to be in this giant fight with him all the time; it’s exhausting and pointless and it can’t be healthy for their kids. But she refuses to give a part of herself up to placate him and his needs.

She’ll never do that, not again.

“My partnership or my relationship with Rio continues to be none of your damn business; it’s never influenced what kind of mother I am. I’m not trying to take the kids away from you Dean but…”

Beth trails off as Dean pushes himself off the couch, taking a few steps towards her. He looks like he might cry; face drawn and eyes wide with worry. He’s at least taking her seriously and all she can think is _it’s about damn time._ He holds her gaze a long moment before nodding, clearing his throat.

“Week by week, just like we agreed.”

She’s got him exactly where she wants him and before she turns to leave, she gives his place a onceover, “The next time Mandy’s over? See if she can help you clean up too.”

Beth walks down the steps to her van and takes a deep breath into her lungs—she feels like a thousand-pound weight has been taken off her chest and when she starts the engine, she allows herself to smile.

\--

She lets out a slow breath as they pass by the same cross street, wanting to open her mouth to say something but Rio insists they know where they’re going. Even though they’re clearly lost right outside of Detroit. It took them a little under twenty-five minutes to meet up and drive the car out of Boland Motors towards their destination but…

Now they’re five minutes late for where they’re supposed to be dropping this thing off.

He glances at her, drumming his thumbs on the steering wheel. “You carsick?”

“Not yet,” She mumbles and runs a hand through her hair, “But maybe I should put the directions into—”

“Nah, I got it.”

“We’re five minutes late.”

“And he’ll wait, we’re almost there.” Rio insists, squinting out the windshield at a passing street sign. “What’s that say?”

“Broadstreet.” She chews on her lower lip, “I think we passed this before though.”

Rio leans back against the seat and slams his hand down on the dashboard because, “The heat fuckin’ sucks in this car.”

She smiles just a little, a laugh slipping from her lips. “Well it wasn’t chosen for it’s heating and cooling system.”

He licks his lips and turns right down another street, pausing a moment at the end of it. “I’m missin’ a cross street somehow.”

Beth turns her shoulder so she’s facing him a little easier, “You know there’s this fancy new invention where you can put an address in and based off of where you are, it’ll tell you where to go.”

A slow smile tugs at the corner of Rio’s lips as he turns his head to look at her, “I will kick you out of this car, ma.”

“I’ll probably beat you there by using Google maps and walking.” She muses, fluttering her eyelashes at him.

He snorts and pushes on the gas pedal, Beth pulling her jacket a little tighter around her body as he makes another turn. “Fuck, finally.”

They’ve found the right street which turns into being the tiniest ally they could fit the car down but at the end of the road they pull up in front of a small, dilapidated looking white house. She knows instantly they’ve got the right one because Aviles is leaning against Rio’s car, there to pick them up already, and the dude they’re dropping the car off to is sitting on his front steps.

He stands as he sees them approach, sticking his hands in his pockets. Rio parks the car and they both get out; he tugs his hood up over his ears while Beth adjusts the beanie she’s wearing and shivers. What a cold night not to have heat in the car.

“You’re late.” The guy says but he looks amused; she’s not sure why but he’s glancing at her like she’s out of place here. Then again she’s not quite sure _who_ fits in in a place like this: rundown, dark and uneasy.

“Got turned around, not my fault you live on an obscure side-street.”

He comes down the steps and shrugs, “GPS should have directed you just fine.”

Beth laughs but it’s too late to stop it and instantly covers her mouth with her hand as Rio looks over his shoulder at her. She clears her throat and bites down on her lower lip, hard, but it doesn’t stop her from smiling.

She can hear the eyeroll in his voice as he says, “Yeah, yeah, you got the bag or what.”

The guy smirks at her before he exchanges the black duffle bag for the car keys Rio has, “What is it with men not listenin’ to directions, right?” And Beth grins. “Pleasure doin’ business with you Rio, maybe next time listen to your girlfriend so you’re not late.”

Beth’s breath catches in her throat at the label because…while it’s very obvious that they’re _something_ to one another, they’ve never established it with specifics. Not only that but she figures they won’t have that conversation (and that’s okay). They’re exclusive, they’re working together, they have closet space in one another’s homes—and that’s enough.

She waits for Rio to correct him, to say something about them being partners but he…never does. Instead he just smirks out a soft laugh and starts walking backwards towards his car, “Oh fuck off. Maybe pick a crack house that's on the main street next time.”

He turns towards Aviles who throws car keys to him, his other hand going to open the passenger door for Beth. “Thanks, am I droppin’ you off downtown?”

Aviles sighs, “Yeah, got some shit to take care of at the warehouse. Evenin’ Ms. Beth.” He nods his head at her as she gets into the car, Rio closing the door after she’s in.

They exchange a few more words until Aviles gets into the back seat, Rio rounding the corner to get in the driver’s, instantly turning the heat on. He lets out a slow sigh and takes his hood off, pulling away from the street to head back home. She watches him a few moments, her eyes trailing over the profile of his face, sometimes only highlighted by passing streetlights.

Beth bites her tongue on asking a question she’s not sure she’s ready to hear the answer to.

\--

He drops Aviles downtown and five minutes away from his place, his phone buzzes with a text message. Rio pulls out his phone from his back pocket at a red light, glancing at the screen quickly to make sure it’s not Lana and his eyes nearly roll back into his head because—

It’s a blocked number.

Which means it can only be one person.

He waits until he parks the car to read the message, somethin’ in him wanting to delete it right off the bat but—

_I need to see you, something important. Come alone._

There’s a pin droppin’ a location near his apartment, few blocks down, and he runs a hand over his jawline. Based off of the last conversation he had with Carlita, she wouldn’t just be reachin’ out to him for no reason. He believes her that it’s important…but he doesn’t understand why he has to come alone.

“You okay?”

He looks over at Elizabeth who’s undoing her seatbelt, pickin’ up on his expression because she’s gettin’ good at that. “Yeah,” He doesn’t want to tell her even though he’s goin’ to because the last thing he wants this to be is Carlita tryin’ to cause problems by not communicating.

And he bites down, hard, on the gut reaction that wants to tell her he’s got somethin’ to do and it’s none of her business.

“Carlita wants to talk to me.”

She frowns, pulling her beanie off her head which leaves her hair slightly frizzy. “Now?”

Rio pockets his car keys, letting a soft sigh leave his lips before he nods, “She wouldn’t insist if it could wait.” He at least knows he can offer that, Carlita’s pushy but it always comes with a reason.

He’s just glad they didn’t wander back into his apartment for her to be waitin’ on his kitchen counter again. Elizabeth’s considering somethin’ he’s said and he needs to tell her before she insists on going with him—

“She wants to see me alone.”

She holds his gaze for a long moment before tipping her head back, a scoff crawlin’ it’s way up her throat. “Of course she does.”

Her fingers play with the material of her beanie on her lap; he gets she’s frustrated but Carlita’s a woman of meaning what she says. If he brings Elizabeth with him, she won’t tell him anything. Ironically for a woman who’s stabbed him in the back it all comes down to expectations based on trust.

There’s a very fine line that Elizabeth’s willin’ to walk when it comes to Carlita despite that Rio’s been honest about how their partnership ended. He’s not sure what more he can offer her;

“Do you trust me?”

She looks over at him, a smile tuggin’ the ends of her mouth because this feels far too familiar. “God no.”

He smiles and shakes his head, leanin’ over the center console to brush his lips along her own, “That’s good.”

Rio kisses her, slow and purposeful, takin’ his time to map the way her mouth feels against his. He sneaks his tongue past her teeth to deepen it, encouraging a reaction from her, a soft gasp echoing back. Pulling back before it can get too heated, he cups her cheek and runs his thumb along her jawline, her lips a gorgeous shade of dark pink.

“Go head inside, I’ll be in. This won’t take long.”

Elizabeth nods her head, drawin’ her lower lip into her mouth before getting out of the car. He follows her movements, pullin’ his hood back up over his ears as he watches her head inside his apartment building. He waits until he sees a light turn on in one of his windows to walk to where Carlita wants to meet him.

It’s not very far, just a few blocks down and over, though he wishes he had a heavier coat because the wind is whippin’ around the corners and going straight through the fabric of his hoodie. He sighs and digs his hands into his pockets because this better be fuckin’ good and pauses when he sees her waiting for him on a bench outside of an old-time barber shop.

She’s sitting on the back of it, her feet on the seat and she jumps down onto the pavement when she notices him walkin’ towards her. Carlita sticks her hands in her pockets, drawing closer her leather jacket which can’t be warm enough either and she doesn’t say anythin’ until he’s right in front of her face.

“I wasn’t sure you’d show.”

Rio tilts his head at her, eyes tracing the contour of her face. Even under the dim light of the streetlamp, “Face looks good.” He didn’t get a chance to tell her the last time, was too busy bein’ pissed off that she was in his apartment drinkin’ his tea.

She smiles softly and hums, “It’s almost like I know how to take care of myself.”

“There better be a good reason why I had to meet you alone.”

Carlita glances over his shoulder and watches a car drive by, “Ever since Veto offered your girl a chance to work with him and she said no, I feel like he might try and have her followed. He’s petty like that,” She rolls her eyes, “And I know you know how to drop a tail so…”

She trails off when she catches the look on his face, he’s usually more well-guarded but—he has no idea what she’s talkin’ about. Elizabeth gettin’ an offer from Veto? His eyebrows draw together and he hates that’s all it takes for Carlita to read him like an open book.

“She didn’t tell you.” Carlita’s surprised more than anything when she says it but it doesn’t take away from the fact that she’s _enjoyin’_ the crack in his armor, the fact that Elizabeth kept somethin’ from him.

He holds her gaze for a long moment and feels frustration pop along his nerve endings, short and hot, and he’s not about to stand here and listen to this. She dragged him away for this? He should have fuckin’ known better—

“I told you not to meddle in my relationship.” He all but snaps, turning to walk away from her.

Carlita’s heels click noisily against the pavement as she rounds to face him, a hand falling to his chest. “That’s not what I wanted to tell you!” His momentum doesn’t stop, even when he backs her up a few steps, her eyes a little wide when she pleads with him, “Rio, please.”

He lets out a soft sigh, taking a step back from her and her hand falls from his chest. He can feel his jaw workin’; a limited amount of patience that she recognizes, so she talks fast—

“I overheard Alto, he’s Veto’s main muscle, talking to Veto…he’s the one who hired Ronald to break into Elizabeth’s dealership.”

Rio licks his lips; he wishes he could be more surprised that Veto was behind this whole thing. While he trusted that Carlita looked into Ronald before tellin’ him he was the one who did it, Elizabeth was right in thinkin’ that he was a bit too nervous for the job. Veto probably gave him money, muscle to work with, nice promises offered in those fuckin’ pastel dress shirts.

Still…

“You just overheard this?” He asks, a little bit skeptical, “He didn’t know you were nearby to listen?”

Because while he’s been thinkin’ Veto’s been a little too sweet on Elizabeth for his liking, the last thing he wants to do is fuck up a perfectly good deal to handle somethin’ that’s already been dealt with by Ronald dying.

“It wasn’t a formal meeting…” She trails off a moment, raising an eyebrow at him and—he scoffs. Of course. “I was with Alto for a reason.”

Rio shakes his head, running a hand up and under his hood so he can scratch along his scalp a moment before looking back at her. Carlita smiles like belladonna blooming; beautiful but very deadly.

“What, it’s been so long that you’ve forgotten how persuasive I can be? I’m not just a smooth talker, you know.”

He smirks, drawing his lower lip into his mouth a moment as he looks at her—really looks at her, tries to take her apart piece by piece. He almost sees her, the girl he knew so many years ago; the one that’d sleep in until noon, covered in paint, tease him in Spanish and almost burn the kitchen down makin’ pastries.

Almost, but not quite. She’s not the same anymore and neither is he.

“I really wish you wouldn’t do that.”

Carlita’s eyes travel over his face and this feels like the first time in a long time that they’re on the same page, “You don’t gotta worry about me anymore, Rio.”

Nah, he doesn’t and maybe he never really needed to in the first place. His eyes trace her jawline until his hand moves to tuck a stray strand of her hair around her ear; sometimes he really wonders what would have happened if her brother never died. Would he be pickin’ up coffee mugs off her bedroom floor in an apartment above a coffee shop? Would they be plannin’ their next job? Would she be insistin’ on another way they could flip their game while her brother made pancakes for them?

Or would they still end up here?

“Elizabeth seems like a good one, probably won’t stab you.” She smiles, a little cheekily, “I’d still be careful about that gun though.”

He smirks and licks his lips, noddin’ his head like he’s takin’ her seriously. Carlita bites down on her lower lip before she leans up on her toes and presses a soft kiss to his cheekbone. He can feel the flutter of her eyelashes against his skin and he feels almost overwhelmed by the scent of her perfume before she pulls away.

She starts walkin’ backwards from him, “Let me know what you want to do about Veto.”

She disappears before he has a chance to say anythin’ else but she doesn’t need to hear his reply to know what he wants to do: and it doesn’t involve Veto makin’ it out of their next meetin’ alive.

**Author's Note:**

> hope ya'll enjoyed! I'm always at blainesebastian.tumblr.com/ask if you ever wanna chat :3


End file.
